Best Blurays IconBest Blurays
Featured List
/
National Film Registry

National Film Registry

924 Films

National Film Registry

924 Films

This is the complete list of National Film Registry titles. The NFPB adds to the NFR up to 25 "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant films" each year in December, showcasing the range and diversity of American film heritage to increase awareness for its preservation.

Huge thanks to Eric at https://filmregistry.net/nfrlist/ , this list would not be possible without his list.

On top of the original list, we have manually checked all of them, and ranking the best available release according to our philosophy (for example, a good HD official stream would be ranked over an older DVD).

To note:

  • Martha Graham Dance Films were broken into the four individual titles, Heretic (1931), Frontier (1936), Lamentation (1943), and Appalachian Spring (1959)

  • Zapruder Film (1963), Let's All Go to the Lobby (1953), and Let's All Go to the Lobby (1953) do not meet the requirements for TMDB so they are not included in the below list.

1
The Best Years of Our Lives poster
Letterboxd
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

WB Blu-ray

Best Video:

WB Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1985 Embassy LaserDisc

Additional Info:

New restoration was confirmed in around 2021-2023? Screened in 2025&2026

Best English-Friendly:

WB Blu-ray

Best Video:

WB Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1985 Embassy LaserDisc

Additional Info:

New restoration was confirmed in around 2021-2023? Screened in 2025&2026

2
Casablanca poster
Letterboxd
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1984 Fox Hi-Fi VHS

2
Casablanca poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1984 Fox Hi-Fi VHS

3
Citizen Kane poster
Letterboxd
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

WB Europe 4K Blu-ray slightly better encoding than Criterion (caveat: missing Criterion extras)

3
Citizen Kane poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

WB Europe 4K Blu-ray slightly better encoding than Criterion (caveat: missing Criterion extras)

4
The Crowd poster
Letterboxd
DVD
Upcoming Release:

Flicker Alley new 4K restoration 

Best Video:

2013 Bach Films DVD

Upcoming Release:

Flicker Alley new 4K restoration 

Best Video:

2013 Bach Films DVD

5
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb poster
Letterboxd
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1994 LaserDisc (marginally)

Best English-Friendly:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1994 LaserDisc (marginally)

6
The General poster
Letterboxd
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Eureka MoC/Cohen

Upcoming Release:

France 4K Blu-ray and Eureka 4K Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

Eureka MoC/Cohen

Upcoming Release:

France 4K Blu-ray and Eureka 4K Blu-ray

7
Gone with the Wind poster
Letterboxd
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

WB Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

4K Blu-ray upcoming in Fall 2026

Best Video:

WB Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

WB Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

4K Blu-ray upcoming in Fall 2026

Best Video:

WB Blu-ray

8
The Grapes of Wrath poster
Letterboxd
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Fox Blu-ray

Best Video:

Fox Blu-ray

8
The Grapes of Wrath poster
Best English-Friendly:

Fox Blu-ray

Best Video:

Fox Blu-ray

9
High Noon poster
Letterboxd
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

MoC 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

MoC 4K Blu-ray, both Kino Lorber and Germany Filmjuwelen 4K Blu-ray have poor encode. See nicolas review on Eureka Blu-ray. It seems the 4K restoration on that disc and the Olive Films Signature US release served as the basis for the HDR master Kino Lorber commissioned. There are the same traces of grain management in the opticals and the small number of shots from a lower quality source that were spliced in between the OCN footage. The SDR grayscale looks great though and after having compared everything, I would’ve preferred a 4K SDR release. The Eureka Blu-ray release wasn’t encoded by FiM and it shows. For those with the Blu-ray and an appreciation for optimal encoding, consider an upgrade.

Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray: It seems that Kino Lorber commissioned the HDR/DV grade and some additional cosmetic work on the master. They used to mention "… brand new master by studio X" on their back covers when they were supplied with ready-made materials. This isn’t the case here but maybe someone’s in the know and things are different. The HDR grade is darker than the SDR one and flattened the grayscale quite significantly. I mentioned this in the Sabrina and Sunset Boulevard thread as well but I’m not really a fan of these grades and doubt that they’re enhancing the grayscales to make them appear more film-like. I’ve seen worse and it’s not the end of the world when the film is viewed in a dark environment but don’t expect anything as luminous and sparkly as The Big Heat. Kino Lorber’s encoding can be seen here via ko8ebryant’s caps.

Eureka 4K Blu-ray (BD-100): Same 4K master and same HDR grade as on the Kino Lorber 4K but now expertly encoded. Thanks to no compression anomalies standing in the way, we can now scrutinize the master much better. In comparison with the SDR master, I noticed that there are opticals that got hit with further noise reduction and sometimes egregiously so, such as in the scene with Grace Kelly at the train station at roughly 18 minutes into the film. Parts of that scene were sourced from a lower-quality source. In the HDR master, grain was practically erased altogether whereas in the 4K SDR master on the Eureka Blu-ray, grain is visible in the same shot despite the iffy encoding.

I’d still recommend the Eureka 4K Blu-ray as the OCN shots and scenes are frequently gorgeous, beautifully detailed and at most only minimally tampered with. The imperfect HDR grade bugs me but I’ll still use Eureka’s 4K Blu-ray for my future viewings due to the FiM encode.

Eureka 4K UHD image is frequently stunning and far better than the Kino UHD using the same master. (no surprise) However there is frozen grain throughout baked into the Paramount master, some shots are soft due to management (some are inherently soft) and the HDR is questionable in areas. In some areas the old Eureka BD using the same scan in SDR is preferable. As usual, the issues are Paramount's doing and the only way to escape them would be starting from scratch.

Best Audio:

1992 Republic LaserDisc

Additional Info:

Kino and Eureka UHDs have a mix of new and legacy extras. To have every supplement you will need both UHDs and the original Criterion Laserdisc for the exclusive commentary.

9
High Noon poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

MoC 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

MoC 4K Blu-ray, both Kino Lorber and Germany Filmjuwelen 4K Blu-ray have poor encode. See nicolas review on Eureka Blu-ray. It seems the 4K restoration on that disc and the Olive Films Signature US release served as the basis for the HDR master Kino Lorber commissioned. There are the same traces of grain management in the opticals and the small number of shots from a lower quality source that were spliced in between the OCN footage. The SDR grayscale looks great though and after having compared everything, I would’ve preferred a 4K SDR release. The Eureka Blu-ray release wasn’t encoded by FiM and it shows. For those with the Blu-ray and an appreciation for optimal encoding, consider an upgrade.

Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray: It seems that Kino Lorber commissioned the HDR/DV grade and some additional cosmetic work on the master. They used to mention "… brand new master by studio X" on their back covers when they were supplied with ready-made materials. This isn’t the case here but maybe someone’s in the know and things are different. The HDR grade is darker than the SDR one and flattened the grayscale quite significantly. I mentioned this in the Sabrina and Sunset Boulevard thread as well but I’m not really a fan of these grades and doubt that they’re enhancing the grayscales to make them appear more film-like. I’ve seen worse and it’s not the end of the world when the film is viewed in a dark environment but don’t expect anything as luminous and sparkly as The Big Heat. Kino Lorber’s encoding can be seen here via ko8ebryant’s caps.

Eureka 4K Blu-ray (BD-100): Same 4K master and same HDR grade as on the Kino Lorber 4K but now expertly encoded. Thanks to no compression anomalies standing in the way, we can now scrutinize the master much better. In comparison with the SDR master, I noticed that there are opticals that got hit with further noise reduction and sometimes egregiously so, such as in the scene with Grace Kelly at the train station at roughly 18 minutes into the film. Parts of that scene were sourced from a lower-quality source. In the HDR master, grain was practically erased altogether whereas in the 4K SDR master on the Eureka Blu-ray, grain is visible in the same shot despite the iffy encoding.

I’d still recommend the Eureka 4K Blu-ray as the OCN shots and scenes are frequently gorgeous, beautifully detailed and at most only minimally tampered with. The imperfect HDR grade bugs me but I’ll still use Eureka’s 4K Blu-ray for my future viewings due to the FiM encode.

Eureka 4K UHD image is frequently stunning and far better than the Kino UHD using the same master. (no surprise) However there is frozen grain throughout baked into the Paramount master, some shots are soft due to management (some are inherently soft) and the HDR is questionable in areas. In some areas the old Eureka BD using the same scan in SDR is preferable. As usual, the issues are Paramount's doing and the only way to escape them would be starting from scratch.

Best Audio:

1992 Republic LaserDisc

Additional Info:

Kino and Eureka UHDs have a mix of new and legacy extras. To have every supplement you will need both UHDs and the original Criterion Laserdisc for the exclusive commentary.

10
Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages poster
Letterboxd
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

MoC Blu-ray

Best Video:

MoC same Cohen 2k transfer but slightly better encoding

Best English-Friendly:

MoC Blu-ray

Best Video:

MoC same Cohen 2k transfer but slightly better encoding

11
The Learning Tree poster
Letterboxd
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Criterion Blu-ray

Best Video:

Criterion Blu-ray

11
The Learning Tree poster
Best English-Friendly:

Criterion Blu-ray

Best Video:

Criterion Blu-ray

12
The Maltese Falcon poster
Letterboxd
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

2023 WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

2023 WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

HBO MAX WEB-DL/2000 R1 MGM DVD

Best English-Friendly:

2023 WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

2023 WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

HBO MAX WEB-DL/2000 R1 MGM DVD

13
Modern Times poster
Letterboxd
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

1936 version: Image Entertainment DVD

1954 version: Criterion Blu-ray

Cut info: https://www.nitrateville.com/viewtopic.php?t=31209

Best Video:

1936 version: Image Entertainment DVD

1954 version: Criterion Blu-ray

Best Audio:

2016 Kadokawa Blu-ray

13
Modern Times poster
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

1936 version: Image Entertainment DVD

1954 version: Criterion Blu-ray

Cut info: https://www.nitrateville.com/viewtopic.php?t=31209

Best Video:

1936 version: Image Entertainment DVD

1954 version: Criterion Blu-ray

Best Audio:

2016 Kadokawa Blu-ray

14
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington poster
Letterboxd
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1995 Columbia LaserDisc

Best English-Friendly:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1995 Columbia LaserDisc

15
Nanook of the North poster
Letterboxd
1080p Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Flicker Alley Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

Flicker Alley Blu-ray

16
On the Waterfront poster
Letterboxd
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1994 Columbia LaserDisc

16
On the Waterfront poster
Best English-Friendly:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Sony 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1994 Columbia LaserDisc

17
The Searchers poster
Letterboxd
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Warner Archive 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1988/1990 WB Hi-Fi VHS.

4K Blu-ray is muffled, even compared to already poor WB Blu-ray, from nicolas: "The most noise reduction of any release, leaving hardly anything above 8 kHz. Bass content has also been removed globally."

17
The Searchers poster
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Warner Archive 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1988/1990 WB Hi-Fi VHS.

4K Blu-ray is muffled, even compared to already poor WB Blu-ray, from nicolas: "The most noise reduction of any release, leaving hardly anything above 8 kHz. Bass content has also been removed globally."

18
Singin' in the Rain poster
Letterboxd
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1991 MGM LaserDisc

Best English-Friendly:

WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1991 MGM LaserDisc

19
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs poster
Letterboxd
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Disney 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Disney 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Mono track is on the included Blu-ray; 4K Blu-ray missing original mono. LaserDisc probably better

Best English-Friendly:

Disney 4K Blu-ray

Best Video:

Disney 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Mono track is on the included Blu-ray; 4K Blu-ray missing original mono. LaserDisc probably better

20
Some Like It Hot poster
Letterboxd
UHD Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Capelight 4K announced

Best Video:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray > Kino Lorber which has heavy noise reduction and opening snare hit is missing

Best English-Friendly:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Capelight 4K announced

Best Video:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray > Kino Lorber which has heavy noise reduction and opening snare hit is missing

Showing 20 of 924 films

Made with ❤️ 📀 by vanshady